Drier



July 9, 1940. J. R. SPELLACY DRIER Filed 1mg. 20, 1937 INVENTOR JOHN R.SPELLACY ATTORNEY Patented July 9, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT orrlcrDRIER John R. Spellacy, Burlingame, Calif assignor to Hercules PowderCompany, Wilmington, Del.,

a corporation of Delaware Application August 20, 1937, Serial No.160,165

4 Claims.

This invention relates to driers, and particu-- larly to driers of thedehydrating type.

The object of the invention is to provide an apparatus which is' simplein structure and efficient in operation .for drying or dehydratingvarious materials, and' especially adapted to handle any dry bulkmaterial, such as casein or lactorine (milk curd), grain, flours, mealsand the like.

A further object to provide an apparatus of the nature referred towherein the material to be handled, while moving in one direction inloose,

'comminuted, disintegrated or dispersed form is subjected to the actionof air drying currents moving in the opposite direction whereby saidmaterial receives a uniform drying action throughout its bulk.

A further-object is to provide an apparatus of the character and naturereferred to wherein J provision is made to subject the material to acontinuous or sequentially continuous cycle of movement in loose bulkcondition while being subjected to the drying action of air currents,heated or otherwise, until the moisture content 7 of the material isreduced to the desired point.

A further object is to provide means in a drying apparatus of the natureand character referred to wherein provision is made to subject thematerial in its loose, comminuted, disintegrated or dispersed conditionto the action of means to prevent or retard the development of minuted,disintegrated and dispersed condition will be uniformly acted upon bythe drying currents, or the germ retarding means, or both.

Other objects of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter.

The invention consists substantially in the construction, combination,location and relative arrangement of parts, all as will be more fullyhereinaiter set forth, as illustrated in the accompanying drawing, andfinally pointed out in the appended claims.

The single figure of the drawing is a vertical central sectional view,somewhat diagrammatic, of an apparatus embodying the principles of myinvention.

The methods at, present in extensive use for drying various materials inbulk, such as grain, flour, meals, and the like, and especially thosepracticed in drying casein or lactorine (milk curd), and similarmaterial, are not only crude, ineflicient and expensive, but they alsofail to secure a uniform drying action throughout the bulk of thematerial, through lack of desirable control or proper handling of thematerial and proper and uniformapplication of thedrying medium.

,It is among the special purposes of my present invention to provide anapparatus and method of operation which is efljicient and wherebymaterials in bulk may be expeditiously and automatically handled anddried in bulk and in a manner that enables the drying medium to reachall particles of the bulk material and exert a uniform drying actionthereon, while at the same time preventing or at least retarding anybac-' teria or germ development within the body of the material.

In accordance with my invention I propose to cause the bulk material tobe dried, and in loose, disintegrated and dispersed condition, to movein one direction while'being subjected to the action of a drying medium,such as air currents,

. moving in the opposite direction in such manner that all particles ofthe material are subjected to the dryingaction of the drying medium, andI propose to subject the material to repeated and sequential dispersionrand movement while being acted upon by the drying medium until thedesired stage of dryness thereof is-attained.

I also propose, in accordance with my inven-v tion, to control thedispersion and the speed of movement of the bulk material, and of theflow through the loose dispersed and disintegrated I bulk thereof, ofthe cooling medium:

' I also propose to subject the bulk material in its loose, dispersedand disintegrated condition, and during the drying operation, to theaction of means to retard or prevent the development or action ofinjuries bacteria or germs.

And I propose to accomplish these operations under conditions of controland observation which insure efliciency, speed and uniformity. ofresults throughout the entire bulk or mass of the material undertreatment.

The operations above indicated may be carried out in many differenttypes and forms of apparatus. -While I have shown and will now describeone type or form of apparatus as an embodiment of my invention, capableof and adapted to emciently carry out my invention, it is to beunderstood that said apparatus is illustrative of the principlesinvolved, and my invention, in its 'of a motor I.

broadest scope, is not to be limited or restricted to the specificdetails of structure shown and described.

In the arrangement shown I provide a vertically disposed casing I,constituting a drying chamher, which may be of any desired size, height,or

cross-sectional shape. The material to be handled, such, by way ofillustration, as casein or milk curd, is fed in bulk into the dryingchamber at any convenientpoint, preferably at or near the lower end orbase thereof, and in any suitable way. In'the illustrative arrangementshown, the bulk material in the case of milk curd, for example, issupplied into the drying chamber from the curd mill 2, which initiallybreaks up the material. This feed may be accomplished in any desiredmanner as, for example, by means of a screw conveyor 3, which deliversthe bulk material to a point centrally of the drying chamber. From thispoint of delivery the material is elevated to the top of the dryingchamber and is there scattered or dispersed in all directions into thechamber and permitted to fall by gravity through the chamber to becollected at the bottom for elevation and dispersion again, ifnecessary, and finally to be withdrawn, ground, sifted and packaged.

Any suitable elevating and scattering or dispersing means may beemployed. I have shown a simple and'eiiicient arrangement for thispurpose wherein a tubular member I is vertically disposed centrally ofthe drying chamber I, and supported in place by suitable struts orbraces 5. Disposed centrally and longitudinally through the tubularmember 4 is a shaft 6, arranged to be rotated-in any convenient way andat any desired or controlled speed, as, for example, by means Carried byshaft 6 is a continuous spiral screw conveyor'8. The material deliveryconveyor 3delivers into a cylindrical chute 9 arranged centrally of thedrying chamber I, at the bottom thereof, and screw conveyor 8 extendsinto this chute and receives the delivered material and feeds itvertically through the tubular member and out through the open top ofthe latter, where, by reason'of the centrifugal action of the screwconveyor, it is thrown, scattered and dispersed loosely in alldirections annularly or radially into the drying chamber, where it fallsto the bottom. The lower end of the drying chamber casing I is formedinto a cone I0, into which the'falling material is collected and bywhich the collected material is directed again to the elevator screw 8for repetition, if necessary, of the elevating and dispersingoperations. The lower end of the tubular member 4, in which theelevating conveyor works, extends into the cone portion III of thedrying chamber, and is itself flared into an inverted cone I I. Ifdesired, and in order to maintain the elevator tube 4 filled with thematerial to be treated while'the apparatus is in operation, the portionI2 of the screw conveyor which works in the flared portion II of theconveyor tube 4, and in the bottom portion III of the drier casing I, isenlarged, as shown, as compared with the other portions of said screwconveyor. The material which collects in the cone portion ID of thedryer casing slides down the sloping surfaces of the cone I 0 and theflare portion I I of tubular member 4, and past the lower edge of thelatter into the space in which the enlarged elevator screw portion I2works, and into the chute 9, and is again elevated and dispersed, asbefore explained.

flare II and the adjacent inner surface of the cone I0, thereby notonlybreaking up any lumps of the material but also preventing clogging ofthe material in the upper portion of the cone III. Should the materialcollect in the cone I 0, too rapidly to be handled by the elevator, thefeed of additional material into the drier chamber may be arrested untilall of the material collected in the cone III has been dried andwithdrawn.

To permit the withdrawal of the material the wall of the cone portion I0is provided with an opening which is controlled by a slide gate I5. Byopening this slide gate the material will fall through the opening forremoval, instead of being directed back to the elevator for furthertreatment.

If desired, or required, the dried material which drops through theopening controlled by slide gate I5, may be received in a pulverizingmill I6, and ground or pulverized. This mill, in the illustrativearrangement shown, delivers into a chute I! through which the ground orpulverized material may be returned into the receivopening through itswall which is controlled by a slide gate I8. When this gate is openedthe pulverized material is permitted to fall through onto a sifter I9,and sifted to the desired fineness,

.and then sacked for shipment, as indicated at 20.

Any lumps or large portions of material caught and retained by thesifter may be returned into chute 9 for further treatment through apassage indicated at 2|. A baflle 36 may serve to prevent the materialfrom flowing from the pulverizing mill I6, into chute 9 when the gate I8is open.

In order to break up any lumps of material that may be elevated'andthrown out by the upper end of the rotating screw elevator, and toassist in a thorough scattering and dispersion of the material, I preferto employ spinning devices onto which the material is delivered by theelevator.

These, in the illustrative arrangement shown, consist of rapidlyrotating disks'22 carried by shafts 23 mounted in the top cover of thedrier chamberand extending into said chamber near and slightly below theupper endof the conveyor tube 4. These shafts may be driven at a highspeed in any convenient manner, as, for example, by means of beltsoperating on pulleys 24. The disks 22 may be plane or fluted orotherwise shaped so that as the material falls thereon sharp hammerblows will be delivered to any lump, and the material will be rapidlywhirled off into the interior space of the chamber and thoroughlyscattered and dispersed therein.

As above explained, the material to be treated while falling through thedrying chamber after being thoroughly scattered and dispersed in loosebulk condition is to be subjected to the drying action of currents ofdrying medium, heated or ing chamber, and designed to be connected bya 1. Apparatus for drying loose, bulk materials,-

lustrative of the principles involved, wherein a blower fan delivers airthrough a heater 26 and pipe connections 21, 2'! into the interior ofthe drier chamber l at various points in the height thereof. I prefer toso arrange the delivery ends of the pipes 21, as indicated at 28, as todeliver the air more or less tangentially into the drier chamber so. asto impart an annularly swirling or centrifugal motion to the aircurrents within the chamber. The air currents ascend through thechamber, and they encounter and pass through the falling mass ofmaterial, thoroughly permeating through the falling mass and subjectingevery particle of the same to an uniform drying action. .An outlet 29 isprovided at the upper end of the, chamber through which the ascendingair currents pass or are drawn oil. In order to disperse the aircurrents and to evenly distribute the same throughout the interior of vthe drying chamber, I prefer to arrange suitable baflles 30 atthedelivery ends of the air supply pipes 21. I have indicated by lightarrows the travel upwardly of the air currents through the chamber andby heavy. arrows the downward travel of the material to be treated.

.If desired the temperature of the heated air, where heated air isemployed, may be-regulated and controlled in any suitable or convenientmanner. For this purpose I-have indicated a thermostat 3| applied to theexterior wall of the dry-:

control pipe, a portion of which is shown at 32, to the air heater 26 inthe usual and well-known manner.

If desired the observation windows 33 may be provided at convenientpoints through the walls of the drying chamber so that the action goingon inside of the chamber while the'operatlon is progressing may beobserved.

Y 40 In order to prevent or retard any injurious or deleteriousbacterial, fermenting'or germ action in the material under treatment, Iprefer to set into the walls of the drying chamber at various pointsviolet ray lamps, indicated at 34, so that the material under treatmentand every particle and portion thereof, while in scattered and looselydispersed condition, is subjected to the actinic action of the violetrays.

To afiord access to the interiorof the drying chamber for cleaning outor other purposes I pro- From the foregoing description it will be seenthat I provide an exceedingly simple, inexpensive and efficient methodand apparatus for drying loose bulk material wherein and whereby thematerial is quickly dried uniformly throughout its bulk to thedesiredstage of dryness, the operation being carried on continuously or incontinuous sequence or cycle.

It is to be understood that many changes in details may readily occur topersons skilled in the art without departure from the spirit and scopeof my invention. I dov not desire, therefore, to be limited orrestricted to the exact details shown and described.

What I desire to protect and claim by Letters Patent is:

including adrying chamber, rotating discs at the top of said'chamberwhereby to scatter and disperse the material in said chamber, a tubularmember vertically disposed centrally within said chamber, an elevatoroperating within said tubular member and delivering at its upper endthrough said tubular member on to said rotating discs, means to deliverthe material to be treated into the lower end of chamber, and means tocirculate drying currents upwardly through the chamber and the fallingmass.

2. Apparatus for drying loose, bulk materials, including a dryingchamber, rotating discs at the top of said chamber whereby to scatterand disperse 'the material in said chamber, a tubular member verticallydisposed centrally within said chamber, an elevator operating withinsaid tubular member and delivering at its upper end a through saidtubular member on to said rotating discs, a receiver at the lower end ofthe chamber to receive the scattered and dispersed material as it fallsthrough the chamber, said receiver having means to return the materialcollected therein to the elevator, means to deliver the ma! terial to betreated into the lower end of cham-' discs, a receiver at the lower endof the chamber to receive the scattered and dispersed material as itfalls through the chamber, said receiver having means to return thematerial collected therein to the elevator, said receiver also having acontrolled opening to permit the material to be delivered from thechamber, means to deliver the material to be treated into the lower endof chamber, and means to circulate drying currents upwardly through thechamber and the falling mass.

4. Apparatus for drying loose, bulk materials, including a dryingchamber, rotating discs at the top of said chamber whereby to scatterand disperse the material in said chamber, a tubular member verticallydisposed centrally within said chamber, an elevator operating withinsaid tubular member and delivering at its upper end through said tubularmember on to said rotating discs, a mill at the base of said chamberadapted to disintegrate material to be dried and discharge thedisintegrated material into the base of said chamber, a receiver at thelower end of the chamber to receive the scattered and dispersed materialas it falls through the chamber, said receiver having means to returnthe material collected therein to the elevator, said receiver alsohaving a controlled opening to permit the material to be delivered fromthe chamber, and means to circulate drying currents upwardly through thechamber and the falling mass.

- JOHN R. SPEILACY.

